


Steven Universe Farther Into The Future Episode 20: Dungeons & Robot Dragons From Outer Space

by LMasterm1nd



Series: Steven Universe Farther into the Future [23]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Aliens, Drama, Dungeons & Dragons References, F/F, F/M, Gem/Human Relationships (Steven Universe), Monsters, Robots, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-21
Updated: 2020-08-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:00:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 10,504
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25425790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LMasterm1nd/pseuds/LMasterm1nd
Summary: The Gembusters send one of their old experiments to Earth
Relationships: Connie Maheswaran/Steven Universe, Garnet/Ruby/Sapphire (Steven Universe), Greg Universe & Steven Universe, Lars Barriga/Emerald, Mystery Girl/Pearl (Steven Universe), Rose Quartz/Greg Universe
Series: Steven Universe Farther into the Future [23]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1607287
Kudos: 8





	1. Steven and Connie's 20th Anniversary

Piers woke up to a familiar scent, a most pleasant one. This aroma could only mean one thing, Dad was making hash browns. Steven rarely made hash browns, but when he did, they were good, really good. Steven didn't buy any of those pre-made frozen hash browns from the Grocery Store, he made them from scratch. Steven's hash browns were crispy but not too crispy, they tasted great with a satisfying crunch. 

Piers normally adhered to his own schedule but, when his dad made hash browns, he was more than willing to break it, Aunt Amethyst liked them just as much he did. He had to make sure he got to the kitchen before she did. Aunt Amethyst had a tendency to eat them all before anyone else could. He forgone changing out of his pajamas and went straight for the breakfast table, but it was too late, Aunt Amethyst had beat him to it, as she guzzled down the entire pan of Hash Browns. "Sorry, buddy, should have gotten up sooner" Amethyst bragged. "That's what you think" Steven said "I planned ahead this morning" Steven opened up the oven, revealing a whole pan of freshly cooked Hash Browns. 

"Wait, if those are the hash browns, what the hell was I eating?" Amethyst asked. "Sponges, painted, heated, sponges" Steven said. "Wow, how'd you make them taste like your hash browns?" Amethyst asked. "I didn't, must have been some placebo effect" Steven guessed. Amethyst bowed in respect for Steven's cleverness. Steven knew how much Piers liked his hash browns so he served him first, and not too long the rest of the family gathered for breakfast, Rose was also a fan of Steven's hash browns. They were hard to make, but seeing the sparkle in his kids eyes when he makes them, makes the all the hard work worth it.

"So, Steven, remember what day it is today?" Connie asked. "Uhhh....is today something special or something?" Steven asked. "Our Anniversary?" Connie pointed to the calendar. "Oh, that was today? Oh, shoot I forgot" Steven said. "Nice try Steven, I know you didn't forget" Connie said "you do the same thing every year, you pretend to forget and then surprise me, this year, why not stop with the playing dumb and just surprise me." "Have I really gotten that, predictable?" Steven asked. "Well, to be honest, you didn't fool me the first time, either, I know you too well" Connie bragged.

"Well, I gotta get going soon" Steven said "I've gotta inspect Don Ruby's new business before it opens, make sure all building codes are met and all that." "You mean that mafia boss gem?" Connie asked. "Yeah, but I don't think she's doing that sort of thing anymore" Steven answered.

* * *

Tonight is going to be the grand opening of Don Ruby's new nightclub, The Lounge. Today however, she was conducting job interviews. City bi-law states that all gem operated businesses must have at least two human employees, and vice versa for human operated businesses. Don Ruby was currently conducting an interview with Piers's girlfriend, Alice. "So, you're previous employers say your a diligent worker but you've been late a few times..." Don Ruby said. "Yeah, my home life is a bit complicated" Alice answered. "So, how old did yous say you was?" Don Ruby asked. "Sixteen" "Ain't you a little young to be working in a place like dis?" Don Ruby asked. "Not in this state, legally I can work in a place like this but not attend as a customer" Alice said. "You humans sure have some loopy laws" Don Ruby said "No offence." 

"Alright, well, you're the final human employee we need, you can start tonight" Don Ruby said "you'll be payed, what's the name...minimum wage...now how much was that...twenty bucks an hour?" "Twenty bucks an hour!? That's more than minimum wage!" Alice said. "I admire your honesty kid, but I'll still pay you what I said I would anyway, I've gained plenty of cash selling some old junk I didn't need no more, ancient gem tech sells for a high price, s'not like I need all the money anyway, just need enough to cover operating costs." 

"Wow, thank you, Mrs. Ruby, this is so generous of you" Alice said. "Just call me "Don" kid" Don Ruby said "Come, I'll show you to the break room." Don Ruby lead Alice to a room at the back of establishment, to her surprise, it wasn't like any break room she had seen before, it was more like a section of nightclub that was reserved for VIPs. It had arcade machines and vending machines. "As you can see, I take care of the people who work for me" Don Ruby commented.

"This is Pearl, she is the hostess, and the head supervisor" Don Ruby said, gesturing towards a pearl dressed like a 1950s socialite "She'll get you fitted for your uniform." "Nice clothes, where did you get them? A donation bin?" Underground Pearl asked with a mean giggle. "I did, actually" Alice said. Underground Pearl was stunned by the answer "You know I was just teasing, right?" "I know, but my fashion choices are rather limited right now, they have been for a while." "Uh...let's just get your measurements, stand still please" Underground Pearl requested. 

A few moments later, Underground Pearl had worked up a nice fine uniform for Alice. "Wow, this is the best uniform I've had to put on" Alice commented. "See, Jasper? Somebody likes my work" Underground Pearl. Jasper groaned in response to this. Alice was surprised to see Jasper there, ever since that incident where she forcefully fused with her boyfriend, she'd been not very comfortable around her. "Ah ah ah, attitude Jasper" Underground Pearl said "You don't want to have a private "conversation" with me again in Human & Gem resources again, do you?" "Uh, no! no! I mean, er, I look forward to working with you!" Jasper said, suddenly going very stiff and panicky.

"So, new girl, because you chose to come work here and Jaspikens here...well she doesn't have much of a choice but to work her until her debt is paid, you are supervisor, so if gives anyone any trouble, please, do let me know" Underground Pearl said, sneering at Jasper. 

"Well, I can see you've been well acquainted with your fellow workers, now if you'll excuse me, got an upcoming appointment with the local city councilor" Don Ruby commented 

End of Chapter 


	2. Dinner Plans

*Gembuster HQ, Somewhere In Deep Space*

"Where in the universe is DJ Rayve, usually his "shatterpaloozas" are over within a few hours, it's been a day!" The Prospector complained, slamming his fist on the table. "Maybe he's just bein thorough master..." One of the Pearls in his harem suggested. "The Pearl is right, Prospector, you did say for him to kill every gem, maybe there's more there than we thought?" Llesh suggested. "And every human too" The Prospector added. "What!? Humans?! Isn't the purpose behind our organization to eliminate all gems in the universe!?" Llesh exclaimed. 

"Well, there's been a change in plans" The Prospector said "Earth is not just infested with gems, but gem sympathizers as well, and not only that, but it compelled The Bloodrose Brigade, Margaret and I believe Rayve, to go turncoat, this planet must be cleansed of such filth, do you not agree?" Llesh said nothing in response, but merely gazed in disbelief in what he had just heard his friend of seven thousand years say. "Is there a problem?" The Prospector asked in a subtly threatening tone. "Oh, by the stars, no, I was merely...surprised at recent events" said Llesh lying through his teeth. "Good, glad to hear it, I was concerned that you, the one who has been by my side for so very long, was turning turncoat as well" "What? Me? No, never" "Good, because I'd have to kill you if you did" "E-excuse me!?" Llesh exclaimed. The Prospector laughed "Just joking, I know you wouldn't betray me" The Prospector said "after all, you're wise enough not to do so...in any case, it would seem drastic measures must be implemented, do you remember GKG 001 Gemivore?" "Yes, all too well, that blasted machine killed some of our best soldiers as collateral damage while obliterating its targets during it's trial run" Llesh said regretfully "you ordered it to be put away because it was too dangerous to be utilized and mass production was ceased soon after." "Well, things change..." The Prospector said. "What? You can't!" Llesh warned. "Oh, and why not, oh please, do tell..." The Prospector said. Llesh noticed he was reaching for a weapon when he said that. "What I mean to say is...it's far too good a weapon to be wasted on such moderately evolved apes and defenseless gems" Llesh said, again, lying through his teeth "needless overkill, wouldn't you agree." 

"Hmm...Indeed, nonetheless, desperate times call for drastic measures" The Prospector concluded "I have work to do, please excuse me, Llesh." "O-of course" Llesh said, taking his leave. Once Llesh reached his quarters and quickly brewed himself some tea to calm himself down, in his advanced age, his body was sturdy but his heart, not so much. "Oh dear universe all around, his mind really is too far gone" Llesh said "I must warn Captain Bloodrose...no, Steven..."

Meanwhile in a far corner of the Gembuster HQ, The Prospector opened a huge door into a room containing something big. "Prospector, is that you? Did one of your pearls birth an unwanted offspring for me to consume? It's been a while since the last one, and I'm very hungry" A menacing robotic voice said with a wicked cackle. "Unfortunately, no, Llesh made me keep the last one" The Prospector said. "Awww....but I'm starving" The Robotic Voice said. "Well, how would you like to go to an all you can eat buffet?" The Prospector said "as it turns out there's a planet full of gem sympathizers and gems that I want you to clear it of." The Prospector said with an insidious grin. "Oooh, all you can eat eh? If I had been built with a function to do so, my mouth would be watering" The Robotic voice said. 

* * *

At the Universe Household, Rose had called Piers to the kitchen, for some reason she had a military officer's outfit on, complete with medals, and a visor over her eyes that Garnet gave her when she was little. "Any questions before we begin?" Rose asked. "Uh, yeah...what's with the outfit?" Piers answered. "Oh, the old man down the street was having a yard sale, he sold me his old army uniform" Rose explained. "You're wearing an army veteran's uniform!? Rose, I think that's a federal crime" Piers advised. "In any case, this evening is Mom and Dad's anniversary, and given recent events, we need to do something to make this one special" Rose said "I propose we give dad the night off and cook dinner for them!" 

"That's actually a good idea" Piers said "hey, Aunt Amethyst, mark the calendar, Rose had an actually good idea." "She did!? Your sister!?" Amethyst said in disbelief. "Alright that's enough" Rose said "as head chef I order you to stop clowning around." "You, the head chef?" Piers said before breaking out in laughter. "Hey, what's so funny? I can make food!" Rose asked. "No offense, Rose, but you didn't inherit your dad's culinary skills" Amethyst said "I mean, you couldn't even make yourself a sandwich."

"So I put a loaf of bread in the dishwasher one time!" Rose scoffed "besides, I believe I can do a good job as head chef, couldn't I, Auntie Garnet?" "It's going to end in disaster" Garnet commented. "Et tu Auntie Garnet!?" Rose exclaimed. 

Just then Steven and Connie were about to leave when they noticed what was happening in the kitchen. "Uh, what's all this?" Steven asked. "Oh, we're planning on cooking dinner for you two" Rose said "say, wait...why are you dressed like you're going out?" "Because we are, your father's taking me to the new night club opening in Little Homeworld tonight, it's been twenty years since we last went to one" Connie said. "Awww...." Rose said, disappointed. "Hey, if we had known you were going to do this, we would have stayed, but we have reservations tonight, sorry" Steven said. "Wait, that's tonight, alright!" Amethyst said. "Oh yeah, that's right, I'm legally an adult, I can go too!" Rose said.

"Uh, you guys, this is just between your father and I" Connie said. "Well, me and Amethyst are going, but we didn't say it was with you" Rose suggested. "Well, I suppose that's fine" Connie said. "Heck yeah!" Amethyst cheered. "Oh, Piers, I hear your girlfriend's working there, and since I can go and you can't, I'm gonna tell her some embarrassing secrets about you!" Rose said. "You better not or you're dead!" Piers said. 

End of Chapter 


	3. The Lounge, Grand Opening

Don Ruby's new night club, The Lounge was officially open for business. It's uncreative name didn't bother Beach City citizens as this was the town's first and only night club. Don Ruby gained funds pawning off old gem technology, it sold for a lot on the black market, she even sold a few weapons, although they were no longer operational, Don Ruby's no liar but she does sometimes omit certain facts. Don Ruby wasn't afraid of any vendetta's any mob will declare on her, after all, she wrote the book on underground crime and she knows every trick in the book, some of which no criminal gang on Earth has even tried. 

Everyone of drinking age or just anyone eighteen and over was lining up to enter it. Don Ruby wanted her business to be like how her Blind Spots were, places where people can relax, let loose and enjoy themselves, of course now that it's era 3 her business had the added benefit of no totalitarian dictatorship to hide from. Of course someone's holding up the line. "Let me in!" A man in glasses with hair that resembled curly french fries shouted. "Then we need to see ID" A Topaz responded. "Oh, I get it, you're trying to steal my personal information and upload it to a big government database!" Ronaldo accused. "No, we're simply trying to comply with the law, we can't let anyone in without valid ID" The Topaz explained. "Listen here, My daughter works for you, I need to speak to her, I haven't had dinner yet!" Ronaldo argued. "Look sir, regardless, no ID no entry, and your holding up the lines, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave" The Topaz said. "And what if I don't?" Ronaldo asked in a smug way. "Then we'll have to make you leave" The Topaz said, getting down to him at eye level. Ronaldo said nothing and reluctantly ran away, everyone in line cheered for the Topaz bouncer.

* * *

Meanwhile, Joshua and Margaret were riding on Joshua's motorbike. "I don't see why I can't come with you to the new place" Margaret said. "Well, you're too young, kid, dis place if for grown ups, only" Joshua said. "But that's not fair" Margaret pouted. "Hey, come on, you get to have a sleepover with your best friend Darla, doesn't that sound fun?" Joshua asked, trying to cheer his adopted daughter up. "R-really!?" Margaret cheered with excitement. Joshua breathed a sigh of relief, thankful for no tantrum.

It wasn't like he didn't understand her, being from outer space is hard enough, but despite being a child, she was the height of fully grown human adult, but for her, it was a normal height for her a child of her species or at least what's left of it. So naturally, she sometimes got confused. 

Soon Joshua pulled up to The Barriga residence. Joshua helped Margaret take off her helmet and helped her out of the sidecar. He rung the doorbell, and the door was answered by Darla's grandparents. "Welcome back Margaret" Mrs. Barriga said. "Thanks so much for letting her stay the night" Joshua said. "Hey, don't worry about it, she's a delight to have around and her and Darla get along so well" Mrs. Barriga said. "Yeah, besides, we understand, we too were young once" Mr. Barriga added. "Awright, kid, I'm goin', you be on your best behavior, awright?" Joshua told Margaret. "Yes, have fun!" Margaret said waving goodbye.

* * *

Amethyst and Rose decided to let Steven and Connie have their special night together and decided to look for their own table. "Rose, Amethyst!" Pearl called over from a table. "Garnet called and said you two would be here" Pearl said "but wait, where are Steven and Connie?" "Oh, Mom and Dad are having their anniversary celebration tonight so they're at their own table" Rose said. "Oh, that's right, I'm so glad they worked things out after what that Alternate Timeline Steven did, I mean, don't get me wrong, what happened in his timeline in is tragic, but that doesn't excuse what he did" Pearl said. 

Just then, their waiter showed up, but to everyone's surprise, it was Jasper. "Welcome to The Lounge, what can I get you? Like I care" Jasper asked in a disinterested voice. "Uh, Jasper, Ms. Pearl told me to remind you of rule one of the employee code" Alice called over. "Sincere service with a smile..." Jasper answered in a grouchy tone. "She also told me to come tell her if you weren't listening to that rule" Alice reminded her. The mention of Alice reporting her to Underground Pearl filled Jasper with dread, that pearl in particular was terrifying. "So, what's the first rule for an employee again?" Alice asked, knowing full well that Jasper was afraid of Underground Pearl.

"S-sincere service..." Jasper began, before slapping herself on both cheeks, forcing out a smile on her face "...with a smile!" "That's better" Alice said. "This job's going to be much more fun than I thought." 

Meanwhile, Don Ruby was talking to the Topaz bouncer, who was on break, while another gem took over for her as bouncer until her break was done. "So, what was with da holdup earlier?" Don Ruby asked. "There was this persistent man trying to get in, I kept telling him he needed an ID for me to let him in, but he kept insisting he shouldn't have to" The Topaz said. "Ah jeez, how troublesome" Don Ruby commented. "Yeah, he claimed that his daughter worked here" The Topaz joked. "Wait, hold on a minute, we actually have two humans under our employ" Don Ruby said "hold on a moment." 

"Hey, Alice, may I have a word with you?" Don Ruby asked Alice. "Uh, Okay" Alice said nervously. Alice was internally panicking, she had hoped her father wasn't causing any trouble, she had lost so many jobs because of her dad, and she needed this job, because it's not like her dad will have a job any time soon.

"Hey! Jasper!" Amethyst shouted. "What is it?" Jasper asked, forcing a smile. "I asked for a Cuba Libre, this is a Cosmopolitan" Amethyst answered, splashing her drink on Jasper. "Why I oughta-" Jasper snarled. "Oh Jaspykens!" Underground Pearl called from across the room. Jasper froze and than made a big, toothy smile. "Now, why don't you get me the right drink, Jaspykens" Amethyst said, booping Jasper on her gem. 

Jasper walked off to get Amethyst her right drink. "You realize she's going to kill you when she's done work?" Pearl warned her. "I doubt it, I know of Jasper's situation with Don Ruby, and I'm going to make the most of it" Amethyst said. "I'll drink my non-alcoholic drink to that!" Rose cheered. 

Meanwhile in Don Ruby's office, Alice was explaining the situation to her. "Wait, let me get this straight, this man you're describing is your father?" Don Ruby asked. "Yeah, I know, I'm sorry he disrupted your business, but please don't fire me" Alice pleaded. "Fire you? For what? I don't blame people for something that ain't their fault" Don Ruby said "In fact, I'm more worried for you than anything." "Look, it's fine, I'm used to it" Alice said. "Hey look, I may not know a lot about parent and child relationships, but what I'm hearin ain't healthy" Don Ruby said.

"Oh please, what I've told you isn't the worst" Alice said "you know what a birthday is?" "Yeh, I'm familiar with the concept, go on" Don Ruby said. "Well, back when I was little, I used to be a fan of this franchise My Mini Horsey, my favorite character was Dusk Twinkle, and on my birthday, dad came home with a Dusk Twinkle doll" Alice explained "but what I didn't know was that he forgot it was my birthday, and it wasn't a present for me and he forbid me to touch it, because it was a rare collectors item, he bought it for himself." "Izzat so?" Don Ruby commented. Don Ruby had noticed Underground Pearl had been listening in on the conversation. Under normal circumstances, when Underground Pearl was being nice, she usually has an ulterior motive and it usually wasn't good, but there were instances when she was genuinely nice, mostly it was too the Off-Color and defective gems from the Blind Spots. Don Ruby nodded towards Underground Pearl, who nodded in response. 

Alice then noticed Underground Pearl. "Oh, Alice, I uh, just wanted you to have these, to change into when you clock out" Underground Pearl said, giving Alice a box. Alice opened it up "Oh my gosh, are these new clothes, did you make these?" Alice asked. "Don't get the wrong idea now" Underground Pearl said, blushing "This isn't even my best work, I just didn't want any employee of ours going around in those rags you were wearing before." "Well, thanks anyway" Alice said. "You're uh, welcome, now if you'll excuse me, I have something I need to do" Underground Pearl said. 

End of Chapter 


	4. A Warning

It would go without saying that The Lounge's grand opening night was a success. Don Ruby had noticed however, that Alice, her human employee, was very tired, as the establishment closes at eleven fifty. Don Ruby was still new to how humans operate, but she didn't need to be an expert on how humans work to know that operating a vehicle while tired can lead to accidents, having noticed this, Don Ruby let Alice sleep in the employee lounge, leaving her with one of the microwavable items in the fridge she bought exclusively for the use of her human employees. 

Meanwhile at Ronaldo's house, he was mad that he had to go and get take out, having to buy food with money that could have been used for the latest box set of his favorite anime series. Ronaldo decided to call it quits for the evening, he was so mad he didn't care if his daughter came home. He turned on his bedside lamp and he noticed something on his pillow, upon closer inspection he noticed, that it was the severed head of his limited edition My Mini Horsey, Dusk Twinkle doll. He screamed in horror at the sight of it.

* * *

Later that morning, at the the Starship Blackthorn, just outside of Little Homeworld, Bloodrose Steven had gotten a call on his communicator, he recognized the tone, it was the secure line established with the ship and Spiritmaster Llesh. Bloodrose Steven turned on the communicator and saw Llesh's face. "Llesh, what is it? An Emergency?" Bloodrose Steven answered. "Indeed it is, I believe you leaving the Gembusters has made The Prospector go more insane than we previously thought" Llesh said.

"If what you're saying is true, than what is he doing?" Bloodrose Steven asked. "He's sending a GKG" Llesh warned. "A GKG? which one?" Robyne chimed in, overhearing the conversation. "GKG 001 Gemivore" Llesh said. "What!? That...thing is still active!? I thought it was destroyed!" Bloodrose Steven exclaimed. "I know it was wrong of me to not tell you it was still active...It's best that you not know what The Prospector was using it for until now" Llesh said "At it's current speed, it will be arriving on earth in no less then 7 hours." "Thanks for letting me know" Bloodrose Steven said.

Bloodrose Steven ran out of the ship and made his way towards the Universe Household, regardless of what this timeline's version of himself and his family thought of him, they needed to know what was coming and they needed to be ready

* * *

Connie heard a knocking on the door, she opened it and saw her husband's alternate timeline counterpart, she still hadn't forgiven him for pretending to be the Steven she married just to have his way with her. "What do you want?" Connie asked, suspiciously. Bloodrose Steven noticed his counterpart glaring at him from across the room, he was getting serious "touch her and you're dead" vibes from him.

"Look, I know you still don't trust me, but this is an emergency, The Gembusters are sending something, I need you all to come with me to the ship, I'll explain everything there" Bloodrose Steven announced. Bloodrose Steven was right, they didn't trust him, but given that the Gembusters have been a real problem for them these past few months, they believed him and agreed to go with him.

Steven and Connie were lead to the conference room of the Starship Blackthorn. On the screen were blueprints of a robot that resembled a humanoid dragon, not unlike Bloodrose Steven's adopted son Junior. "It's called GKG 001 Gemivore" Bloodrose Steven said, gesturing towards the screen. "Gemivore...?" Connie pondered "with a name like that, it sounds as though..." "Yes, it was designed to eat gems" Robyne interrupted "If you look over here..." Robyne pressed a button and the screen displayed blueprints of GKG 001's head "...you can see that it's "teeth" are actually row upon row of fifty drills each, designed for breaking down a gem's...well, gem." "It was decommissioned around fifteen earth years ago, or so we thought" Tho'rax added. "Yeah, it was effective at what it was designed to do, but it proved to be very problematic" Plasm chimed in "it attacked gembuster troopers as well as other gems, none of the technicians could handle it, so they sent us to take it down." 

"So, it sounds like you guys might have it under control?" Steven guessed. "We might, but there is also the chance that there may have been upgrades over the years, considering that it's been active without our knowing" Bloodrose Steven said "There's a chance we may need backup and that's where you, Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl come in." "Well, it's most likely to strike down on Little Homeworld, we'll have to evacuate that area, do you think it's possible we'll have the upper hand if we cut off its food supply?" Connie asked. "I doubt it, this thing is a machine, it doesn't need to eat out of necessity, eating is merely it's prime directive, simply put, it eats only for pleasure" Robyne said.

"Regardless, Connie's right, it's still best we evacuate Little Homeworld, we can't have any civilian casualties" Steven said "and from what we've been told, we may still have plenty of time!" 

* * *

Meanwhile, above Earth's atmosphere, a huge dragon-like machine had entered Earth's orbit. "So this is earth, eh?" The Machine said. It's eyes glowed bright red for only a moment. "Scanning complete. Hmm...The Prospector was right, there a lot of gems on this planet...and a lot of them are localized in one region, looks like I've hit a smorgasbord...and who knows? I might try an organic diet while I'm here..." The Machine said with a menacing laugh. 

End of Chapter   



	5. An Invitation

Alice was woken up by Don Ruby. "Ugh, Don, what time is it?" Alice asked. "I can't tell ya now, we gotta get outta here, Universe is evacuating Little Homeworld, so come on!" Don Ruby said. "Oh, thanks, I have a date with my boyfriend today, anyway" Alice said. Alice was taken to Don Ruby's customized Wandering Eye. "Take her home, Fish Tail, right now it's better than here" Don Ruby ordered the driver. Don Ruby watched as the Wandering Eye flew off to the main area of Beach City. She then noticed Steven coming by with Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, Connie and a strange group of mismatched organic lifeforms in matching jumpsuits. 

"Ay, Steven, what's with the wacky weirdos over here?" Don Ruby asked. "Oh, this is the Bloodrose Brigade, they're turncoat Gembusters, they're our informants for the incoming attack" Steven said. It was then that Don Ruby noticed Bloodrose Steven. "Uh...Did I have too much coal last night? I think I'm seein' double here." "No, this is my counterpart from an alternate timeline, Bloodrose Steven" Steven introduced. "No offense but, dat sounds like somethin' outta those internet fan fictions I heard so much about" Don Ruby commented. "Regardless, he says we need all the help we can get to deal with this incoming threat, so I'd like to call in one of the favors you owe me."

"Say no more, Universe, I gotcha covered. Now all rubies are associated with the element of fire, but I, in particular, am always packing heat!" Don Ruby proclaimed as she summoned her arm cannon, and spinning it's rotary barrel "Oy, Topaz, you up for some action?" Don Ruby's Topaz goons fused into one. "It's been quite some time, I hope we're not too rusty" The now fused Topaz answered. 

"Alright, but don't underestimate this foe, It's dangerous, I nearly lost my other arm when me and my team took it down" Bloodrose Steven warned. "Captain, incoming!" Robyne said, pointing towards the sky. Everyone looked up and saw something approaching from the sky. Robyne had superior eyesight, being able to see things from faraway, almost like binoculars, her naturally gifted eyesight is what helped made her aim deadly. "It looks as though The Prospector upgraded the darn thing, just as we anticipated, Captain" Robyne announced.

Everyone prepped for when it landed, but the descending machine suddenly changed direction. "It's heading towards Beach City!" Connie pointed out. "What!?" Steven exclaimed "But that's where we evacuated everyone!" "Did it somehow figure out what we were planning?" Pearl wondered. "No time to question why it changed direction, we gotta get moving, quickly!" Garnet commanded. Nobody said anything about it, they all went into action.

* * *

Beach City citizens were taken by surprise when a huge mechanical dragon crash landed on main street. "Oh boy! What a menu!" The mechanical dragon said "I can't decide what to eat first!" Bismuth, Lapis and Peridot jumped into action. The Creature was the size of Alexandrite, but they didn't care, they were ready for action. Peridot held out her hand, trying to use her metal control powers. 

She managed to get the dragon three feet off the ground, but the dragon launched a laser net at Peridot, entrapping her. Lapis summoned a huge golem of water to attack the dragon, but the dragon launched another laser net which went through the water, capturing Lapis and pulling her in, adding to the net, it also got Bismuth as well. Other gems decided to take action against this beast, but they too were captured. It wasn't long before it started capturing humans too.

The Dragon was now adorned with laser nets all across it's back, looking like a sack over it's back. "Hey! Let them go!" Steven's voice called. "Captain Bloodrose, is that you? No, you have both your arms" The Dragon said, turning around, and around it's neck, were the laser nets containing Lapis, Peridot and Bismuth. "Steven!" All three of them cried out at various points. "Lapis, Peridot, Bismuth! It got you too!?" Steven exclaimed. "Oh, are these you're friends? I guess I'll save them for dessert!" The Dragon responded.

"Hey, you do what they say GKG 001, we've taken you down once, we'll do it again" Bloodrose Steven shouted. "Oh, there you are, Bloodrose, It's you're fault I'm here you know, The Prospector wasn't too happy when you announced you were leaving the Gembusters" The Dragon said. Bloodrose Steven said nothing, as a wave of guilt had struck him, he couldn't deny that there was some truth in this machine's words. 

"Enough of this, Amethyst, Pearl, let's go!" Garnet commanded. Amethyst and Pearl, united to form up Alexandrite. Alexandrite summoned her bow, but The Dragon, GKG 001, took the sack made of laser nets containing both humans and gems, and held it in front of him. Alexandrite quickly held her fire. "Ah, ah, ah, If you want to hurt me, you'll have to go through them" GKG 001 proposed "The gems, they might be alright, they'll merely poof, assuming you don't hit their gems of course, but what of the more fragile humans? I thought they were your friends or was that just a lie? I mean, you ARE gems after all." 

Alexandrite was enraged by that comment, but she didn't take action, this machine had outsmarted them. "I'll tell you what I'm going to do, since it's been so long since I've been out and about, so how about we play a game for the freedom of everyone I've captured" GKG 001 proposed. "What kind of game?" Steven asked suspiciously. "I'll go fly over to those mountains up north, and I'll dig a labyrinth into it, I'll wait at the deepest chamber of it, get through the maze to the deepest chamber, we'll fight, and if you win I'll let them go, but if you lose, it won't matter, because when I'm done with you, you won't even be matter!" GKG 001 "But you better be quick, I'm pretty hungry." GKG 001 once again showed off the sack of gems and humans again. This time Steven and Connie heard voices they had recognized. "Mom!" One voice cried out. "Dad!" Another voice cried out. "Help us!" a third voice added. To Steven and Connie's shock. At the top of the pile of captives were Rose, Piers and Pier's girlfriend, Alice. 

"Kids!" Steven and Connie exclaimed in unison. "Oh, you know these humans too?" GKG 001 said "Well that makes things even more interesting...you better hurry." GKG 001 began to take off and flew north.

"Come on everyone, after it!" Steven commanded. Everyone ran off after Steven in the direction of GKG 001. Topaz noticed something about Don Ruby's expression. "Something bothering you, Don?" Topaz asked. "There's something...familiar about that machine, but I can't quite put my finger on it..." said Don Ruby "there's something more to this situation."

End of Chapter 


	6. Dungeon Crawl

Steven and co. kept running in the direction that GKG 001 ran off to. Just than they noticed Don Ruby's personalized Wandering Eye, flying next to them. "Everyone, hop in! That thing said we better hurry if we want to save everyone, right?" Don Ruby said. There was no denying Don Ruby was right, so everyone hopped on to the Don's ship. The Inside was like a stretch limo, and given how long Don Ruby was around, one might think that she pretty much invented the limo.

"Floor it, Fishtail!" Don Ruby ordered. "You got it, Boss!" The Fishtail Quartz in the drivers seat responded. "Don't get too comfortable folks, because this baby will get us to that mountain in no time, so needless to say, It won't be a long ride" Don Ruby said. "Hey, uh, what's Jasper doing here?" Amethyst asked. "I figured we might need the extra muscle" Don Ruby might said "you can consider this your first favor, Jasper." Jasper looked at the wrist of her suit, and noticed one of the stars on it had disappeared, indicating she had one less favor remaining. "Yes! Only 3999 to go!" Jasper cheered "and just so we're clear, Amethyst, I hadn't forgotten about last night, and I won't forget once I finish all my favors I owe to The Don." "I warned you, Amethyst" Pearl scolded. "Hey, you three, now's not the time to be joking around, we have people to save!" Steven snapped.

"Speaking of which, as you no doubt may have noticed, with the extended length of this wandering eye, there's enough room to fit everyone that thing captured" Fishtail Quartz added. "Hey, maybe we can go slower on the way back so we can actually enjoy the ride?" Junior asked. "Save it for when the mission's done, son, let's focus on the current objective for now" Bloodrose Steven instructed. 

"Here we are" Fishtail Quartz said. "Alright, end of the line, everybody off, let's go kick some literal tail" Don Ruby "Fishtail, you stay in the driver's seat, we'll need a getaway driver for when we leave or if things get too hairy, bada-bing!" "Bada-bing!" Fishtail answered. "Alright everybody, let's go in" Steven said. Steven lead everyone into the cave. Everyone walked down what appeared to be a straight and narrow hallway. "That thing said it'd dig a labyrinth, but I doubt it had time to build a complex one" Connie suggested "It's probably going to be some rushed..." Just than, everyone got into a room with four exits "Or...I could be wrong."

"Garnet, which path is the right one?" Steven asked. "Hmm...All paths lead to the central chamber where the GKG is" Garnet said "But the paths are too narrow for all of us to go together, we'll need to split up, I'll go with Don Ruby and the topaz fusion, Connie will go with Junior and Robyne, Plasm and Tho'rax will go with Pearl, Amethyst will go with Jasper, Bloodrose Steven and Steven." "What?! I have to go with him!?" Steven exclaimed. "What!? I have to go with her!?" Amethyst and Jasper shouted at the same time. "Garnet, you set my group like this on purpose, didn't you?!" Steven argued. 

"Ah, ah, ah, we have no time for arguments Steven, time is of the essence" Garnet instructed. "Hey! Don't use my own words against me, you know I don't like that!" Steven shouted. "Come on, Steven, let's just get this over with" Amethyst said, trying to calm Steven down. "Fine" Steven said, trying to calm himself. "Garnet, I hope you know what you're doing" Connie said, as she and her group went down the middle left exit. 

"Steven's Best Gal, is right you just set up a team with more bad chemistry than good" Don Ruby said, as she, Topaz and Garnet went on the far right corridor. "The path they're going down is going to require a lot of teamwork to get past the traps in there" Garnet explained "their chemistry will improve after they get through it." "You are a calculated manipulator who uses future vision to her advantage, I respect that" Don Ruby said.

Down the corridor Steven's group was going down, nobody said anything to each other. Steven was distancing himself from his alternate timeline counterpart. Amethyst and Jasper were looking at each other with nothing but pure hatred. "Hey, slow down" Bloodrose Steven said. "No, why don't you speed up?" Steven said. Bloodrose Steven was about to make a rebuttal but he noticed that Steven had stepped on what appeared to be pressure trigger, he quickly noticed the blade about to descend, when we grabbed the back of Steven's shirt collar and pulled him back just in time as the blade swooped down at a fast speed. "Booby traps!? When did that thing have time to set up booby traps!?" Steven complained. "Heh heh, you said "booby"!" Amethyst chuckled.

"I may not be well versed in human culture, but even I know that's immature" Jasper criticized. "Oh, who asked you!?" Amethyst shot back. Jasper and Amethyst began a shouting match at each other. "Hey, hey, hey! Break it up you two, this near miss had me realize something" Steven said "if we're going to go through this, we're going to have to watch each other backs..." "Don't..." Amethyst interrupted. "and that means..." "Just don't" "All of us are going to have to work together" Steven concluded. "I told you not to say tha-ha-at!" Amethyst moaned. "Hey, look, this isn't exactly pleasant for me either" Jasper said "but My Diamond is right, for better or for worst, we'll have to team up." "Oh no, you too, Jasper?" Amethyst groaned.

"Keep an eye out for any more traps, I got a feeling there's more on the horizon" Bloodrose Steven warned. Just than, Bloodrose Steven stepped on a huge pressure trigger, causing a panel from far away with holes in it, the panel had spinning drills at the end of it, and it made it's way forward towards Steven, Bloodrose Steven, Amethyst and Jasper. "Heh, no problem for me, I'll just punch it" Jasper said. "Can you do that without that thing poofing you? Those drills will definitely puncture your physical form before your fists can do any damage" Amethyst advised. "I'll just make a bubble shield and protect all of us" Steven said. "No look! You see those lights at all four corners, those are explosive devices, my guess is if something blocks it in it's tracks, they'll go off and we'll have a cave in all over us" Bloodrose Steven explained "But those holes, if we can get our bodies to fit through those holes, we can get through." 

"Hey, genius, there's only two holes!" Amethyst shouted. "Then we'll have to split into groups of two and make it so our bodies can fit through each of the holes. Steven noticed the top half hole on his and Bloodrose Steven's side looked like a cartoon bone. "Looks like we're going to have to hug for this one" Bloodrose Steven said. "Figures" Steven grumbled, Steven reluctantly pulled himself close to his alternate timeline counterpart.

Amethyst and Jasper were doing the same for their side, but it wasn't as, well, stable as Steven and Bloodrose Steven's huddle. "Hey, quit pushing!" Jasper shouted. "You're the one who's pushing, buddy!" Amethyst said. "I'm not your buddy, pal!" "I'm not your pal, buddy!" Jasper and Amethyst continued struggling. Eventually, the panel had made it's way, Steven and Bloodrose Steven managed to fit through the hole just fine. "Hey, we did it!" Steven said. "I know we haven't got off on the right foot, but I think that went rather well, wouldn't you say?" Bloodrose Steven said, offering Steven a handshake. Steven was reluctant, only for a second, but he accepted the handshake, both of the Stevens laughed nervously. "Hey, Amethyst, Jasper, did you two make it through okay?" Steven asked

"Yes, we're fine" a strange deep voice answered. Both Bloodrose Steven and Steven were stunned by what they had saw, where Jasper and Amethyst was a light brown gem, with Jasper's gem and Amethyst's gem. "What? What are you looking at?" The New Gem asked. The new gem than saw their hands and screamed in horror, sounding a lot like a female version of a famous former California governor. The new gem immediately unfused back into Amethyst and Jasper. "Oh stars, oh stars, I think I'm going to barf!" Amethyst moaned. "I'm gonna need to take a...what's that thing humans do to clean themselves?" Jasper asked frantically. "You mean a bath?" Steven answered, trying not to giggle. "Yeah, that, I think I need a bath!" Jasper said, frantically. "Me too!" Amethyst added. "What!? Ew, no, you're not going in with me!" Jasper shouted. "Ewww, I so wasn't, I meant in a different bath! Why would you think I would want to be in a bath with you!?" 

Both Bloodrose Steven and Steven couldn't hold in their laughter any longer.

End of Chapter


	7. Out Of The Frying Pan

"Connie, are you alright?" Robyne asked. "I'm just worried about Steven, my Steven" Connie said "Steven won't admit it, but what happened that night still bothers him, I mean it bothers me too but, still..." "Relax, I get it, my captain's actions have disappointed us all" Robyne said "none of us were expecting to do what he did, to us, he was a hero, always helping others, but ignorant when he's the one who needs help." "I guess that man is still Steven after all" Connie said. "Wait, did your Steven do anything like mine did!?" Robyne worriedly asked. "What? No, nothing like that, it's just that, my Steven was so used to helping people, when he ran out of people to help, he had no problems left to solve but his own, but he didn't want to face them, pretended he was fine" Connie explained "but he only ended up making things worse for himself" "And then what happened?" Junior asked. 

"It's kind of a long story" Connie said. "Indeed, there is no time for long stories, we are getting near to the exit" Robyne warned. "Hey, is it getting hot in here or is it just me?" Connie said. "Maybe we're deep underground, close to the earth's mantle" Junior suggested. "Say, Robyne, the way you were speaking about your Steven, earlier, did you two..." Connie wondered. "Well, we tried being a couple but...well...the difference in species had complications" Robyne said "we both agreed that we were better off as friends." "Hey, hold the girl talk, we're here" Junior proclaimed. The group got out of their end of the labyrinth and they found a central chamber, there they found a room with magma pits, it was clear that they had gone that deep into the Earth's crust that they were just above the part of the earth that is magma all the way down to the core. "Hey, Connie, over here!" Steven's voice called. Connie saw that Steven was there with the rest of his group, Steven seemed surprisingly fine, perhaps Garnet did know what she was doing after all. 

Then, as if on cue, Pearl's group showed up and so did Garnet's. "Oh jeez, it's so hot, I'm evaporating" Plasm said as he morphed into a small green alien with long ears "Much better, that is." "Well, it would seem everyone's here..." Bloodrose Steven said "but where's the-" a crashing noise suddenly interrupted Bloodrose Steven. The crash was followed by the laughter of a mechanical sounding voice, right above where they exited the labyrinth, GKG 001 had carved itself a throne and behind it were the laser nets containing many humans and gems alike.

"Welcome to the mess hall!" GKG 001 announced "Now, as you can see, the people I captured are all present and accounted for, even your friends." GKG took out a small cage, it contained, Lapis, Bismuth, Peridot, Rose, Piers and Alice. "And as promised, they're still alive, but I can't guarantee they'll be that way for very long though, I'm gonna need some dessert for after the main course!" GKG 001 boasted.

"Hey, wait a minute" Don Ruby interrupted "you captured two hundred gems, how come I only count one hundred?" "Oh, you noticed have you? Well, the thing is, I just couldn't help myself, so I ate them!" GKG 001 said followed by mocking laughter. The entire group was speechless, Steven had practically turned white at the very notion. "What can I say? What's a meal without an appetizer?" GKG 001 was nonchalantly. "You're a monster!" Pearl said. "Yes, I suppose that is the prey views the predator, but in reality, it's just nature" said GKG 001. "You can throw around all the philosophy you want, but you're gonna pay for what you did" Don Ruby said, summoning her arm cannon, she fired at the robotic dragon, but the fireballs bounced off of it. 

The mechanical dragon leapt down from its chair. "Good, time for my pre-meal warm up! Even after all those gems, I'm still hungry, my appetite was programmed to be insatiable after all" GKG 001 said, as missile launchers came out of its shoulders "Time to tenderize the main course!" The missiles fired in all directions. Everyone scattered to avoid getting hit by missiles or rubble caused by the missiles explosions. Garnet managed to get in close and punched its leg with her gauntlets, but they didn't have any effect. "Do what you want to me, I'm made from Indestructinium, uncreative name for a metal, I know, but you get the idea" GKG 001 said before raising its foot, Tho'rax swooped in at just the right time and held up its foot. Garnet pulled Tho'rax out of there to avoid him getting squished.

"I hate it when meals refuse to get in my mouth!" GKG 001 said angrily. The mechanized beast used it's claws, missles, fire breath, trying to swat at Steven and company like a bunch of flies. However, despite not being able to hit any of them, this machine was proving to be overwhelming. Everyone tried their best to attack the mechanical monster, but their attacks weren't doing anything. "Jeez, how did you and the Bloodrose Brigade stop him last time?" Steven asked his counterpart. "He wasn't in an enclosed space last time, I actually thought this would be easier, but with all this magma around, we may be done for!" Bloodrose Steven said.

"This is getting bothersome!" GKG 001 said as wings unfurled from its back and took flight in the center of the room "I hate to waste food, but you leave me no choice!" Two different cannons came out of it's shoulders. "Oh no! It's atomic cannons, if he lets them loose on the ceiling, this entire chamber will collapse and crush us all!" Robyne said. "But how do we stop him? Our attacks can't reach it and even if they did, they won't do any damage" Jasper exclaimed. Junior got to Don Ruby and whispered in her ear. "I like the way you think kid, awright, let's do it!" 

Junior took Don Ruby in his talons, and flew her up as she readied her arm cannon. "Don!" Topaz exclaimed. "Wait! I know what he's doing...It's wings are the only thing on its body that aren't made of indestructinium!" Robyne said, as she followed suit. "What's this?" GKG 001 said "There's nothing you can do to me, flies! My cannons are fully charged now!" 

Don Ruby fired her arm cannon at GKG's left wing. GKG 001 started flying in circles against its will as its left wing was now malfunctioning. Robyne took aim and fired at the remaining working wing as soon as GKG 001 was flying over magma. As the second wing was destroyed, the cannons powered down, as GKG fell into the magma. Steven summoned a bubble to protect everyone from the splashes made from the magma. 

Robyne, Junior and Don Ruby came down, as everyone praised them for their hard work. "Well, with that taken care of, we should probably set everyone free and pay respect to the gems that were lost" Steven announced. Just then, the magma started bubbling, as a bright glowing orange mechanical arm came out of the magma, and another. GKG leapt out of the magma, it's body glowing bright orange, heated by the magma. "St-St-St-" It stuttered "Still...HuNgRy!" 

End of Chapter


	8. The Truth Behind The GKG Experiments

The now molten hot GKG staggered out of the magma. "Ay' Garnet, can you access the ice powers of your component sapphire?" Don Ruby asked. "Yes, I think I can but I don't see how...no wait! I get it!" Garnet said. "Sti-Sti-Still Hungry!" GKG 001 stuttered, swiping down its claws towards Garnet, who placed her hands ground, causing ice to form around her, making its way towards GKG 001, but when it hit it, instead of it being frozen, a cloud of steam quickly formed around it. 

The Mechanical monstrosity tore through the cloud of steam, clearing it. GKG 001 was now heavily rusted, many parts of it were partially melted, sparks were flying out of it, the lights that represented it's eyes were flashing, struggling to stay on. "I-I-I'm gon-gon-na e-e-eat you!" It stuttered. "Come on now, after that slight flash freeze, it's exterior should be brittle now, storm it!" Don Ruby commanded. Jasper and Amethyst dashed forward, Amethyst wrapped her whip around GKG 001's arm, pulled and tore off the arm. While that happened, Jasper, spin dashed through the robots legs, the once powerful foe fell forward, making noises that sounded like it moans of pain.

The mechanical dragon was wriggling it's remaining arm weakly, as more sparks were flying out of it, making a lot of pained noises as it did. A hatch suddenly opened on its forehead. "I-I gotta h-ha-hand it to you, you-you-you beat me" GKG 001 said calmly. "Don, look at that opening on it's head" The fused Topaz said, pointing at GKG 001. Everyone now looked at the secret compartment in the now defeated robot. In the opened compartment, surrounded by mechanisms and various gadgetry, it was slightly damaged and it was missing a piece, but there could be no denying what it was embedded in there. "Oh my stars, this thing's a gem!" Pearl exclaimed. "Wel-wel-well...it would appear the secret's out...heh heh" GKG 001 mumbled.

"I should have told you before" Bloodrose Steven said "the GKG in The GKG Experiments, it stands for Gem Killing Gem." "That gem...it looks familiar, Don, is that...?" Topaz asked Don Ruby. "There's no mistake, the color, the cut, that's Sagenite's gem" Don Ruby said. "What? You don't think it's THAT Sagenite, do you?" Jasper asked. "There's no denying it, in the early days of Homeworld, almost all sagenites were obliterated, only one survived, and her gem is right in front of us" Don Ruby said "Sagenite, It's been a long time..." "I-I-I'm sorry...did I know you?" GKG 001 asked "when my gem got damaged, my memory got erased...I cou-coul-couldn't even form a body either, M-Ma-Made it easier to adapt to this current life I suppose...I learned the truth about our kind when I was made into what you see now...Th-The Pearl was sort of right in a way, me...you...all gems are monsters" 

"H-hey, that's just your damaged gem talking, Steven, you can fix her, right?" Jasper asked. "I-I don't know, do you have her missing piece somewhere?" Steven responded. "No! You fixed me when you shattered me, you can't do the same!?" Jasper pleaded. "I was only able to revive you because I had all the pieces" Steven said "If I don't have all the pieces, I can't-" Steven was suddenly interrupted by a sudden bang and the sound of a gem being shattered. Everyone looked to see Don Ruby standing over the now defeated robot, with a smoking arm cannon aimed at it and a completely shattered gem where there had been an almost intact one. 

"Don! Why did you do that?!" Jasper exclaimed. "There was no other way" Don Ruby simply said. "That's no reason to-" Jasper said before being interrupted by Steven who simply put her hand on her shoulder and shook his head. Steven too disagreed with The Don's decision but he understood why she did what she did. Don Ruby turned to face everyone, she had kept a neutral expression, but the tears streaming down her face made it all too clear what she really felt. Her decision was not an easy one, but deep down she knew she was did the right thing "Let's get everyone outta here, they've been here long enough" Don Ruby said. 

Everyone said nothing as they let everyone out of their laser nets and escorted everyone out of the cavern carefully. They were extra sensitive to everyone who was mourning the loss of the gems who were eaten. Everyone was escorted onto Don Ruby's Wandering Eye. She ordered Fishtail Quartz to drive slowly because everyone's had enough excitement for one day. As the wandering eye landed in Beach City, everyone rushed to their loved ones...soon afterwords Steven held a ceremony in Little Homeworld to commemorate the loss of all the gems who had lost their lives, some of these gems were gem parents to paternal hybrids.

Rose was very disturbed by what she saw while there, her brother was too, but he processed things differently than most people, so he mostly focused on making sure his girlfriend was okay before he thought if he was okay. "Rose, babe, thank goodness you're okay" Selena said, giving a Rose a hug. "Please don't stop..." Rose requested. "Don't stop what?" Selena asked. "Hugging...I-I need that right now..." Rose explained. "Sure, I can do that for as long as you need to" Selena said.

Don Ruby retired to her office, taking out a good lump of coal and chewed on it, as smoke bellowed out of her nose. Her and Sagenite were more than just friends, she was distraught when he had heard the news of her shattering from an informant who visited The Don while imprisoned back on Homeworld. She knew Sagenite would have loved Era 3, but she knew that thing back in that mountain, was not Sagenite, just like how Steven wasn't Pink Diamond, the very thought of that made shattering the remains of her gem more easier. 

Just than, her communicator started ringing. She quickly wiped the tears on her face. "Ah, Emerald Facet 2L3H Cut 4X0 or should I say, Emerald .P.I., have you found her?" Don Ruby answered. "Yeah, I found her, and I got her contact info, just like you said" Emerald .P.I. answered "I assume this means my debt is finally paid off?" "Just send the number to me and you're good to go, Bada-Bing!" Don Ruby said. "Bada-Bing!" Emerald .P.I. answered. 

End of Chapter 


	9. Alice Moves Out

It was morning and Alice was having her usual morning argument with her dad. "All I'm saying is that you could take out your own garbage once in a while, it's not hard!" Alice shouted. "No way, the government could gather information through our garbage" Ronaldo argued. "Why would the government do that?! What could they possibly gain from our garbage!?" Alice shouted. "That's it!" Ronaldo fumed as he grabbed his hat. "Where do you think you're going!?" Alice asked. "I'm going for a walk, somewhere where people actually take me seriously!" Ronaldo declared. "That's going to be a long walk!" Alice said, picking up a plate and throwing it at her father as he left the house. She picked up a pillow and screamed into it. Just then her phone buzzed with a message from her boss.

DonR: Dear Alice, I must apologize for messaging you so very early in the morning, but there is a matter I'd like to discuss with you this afternoon, you are not in trouble, but there is someone I'd like you to meet with.

Sincerely, Don Ruby 

Alice laughed slightly at the text from her new boss, Don Ruby is not fully accustomed to text messaging, writing this text as if it were a letter. 

Don Ruby meanwhile, sat at her office and reclined in her reclining office chair. "I gotta hand it to these humans, they are the masters in the art of leisure, I never knew comfort like this" Don Ruby commented "and now to play the waiting game." Don Ruby wheeled her chair towards the pinball machine in her office, she had taken a liking to the game. 

As noon pulled in, Alice rushed to work, wondering what her boss wanted from here. "Sorry I'm ten minutes late" Alice said apologetically. "No need to apologize, Alice" Don Ruby said "see ma'am, what'd I tell ya, here she is." "I don't believe it, it really is you" A woman with light brown hair said. "M-Mom..?" Alice said in disbelief. The woman then hugged Alice "It is you! You've grown so much" The woman said happily. "I-I don't understand, Dad said the government took you..." Alice said. "Of course he'd say that, I can't believe him, I should have suspected him the moment my car drove off with you in it, did you believe him when he told you that?" Alice's mother asked. "I-I didn't know what else to believe...I-I was only three...Oh god...I've been kidnapped this whole time..." Alice stammered, she immediately broke into tears at the moment of the epiphany. 

Alice's mother turned to Don Ruby. "Thank you so much...I shouldn't have doubted you..." She said to her. "Don't worry about it, I convinced ya to come eventually didn't I?" Don Ruby said. "Where is your father now?" Alice's mother asked. "He said he was going for a walk to someplace where people will take him seriously?" Alice said, wiping the tears off her face. "That sounds like one long walk" Her mother commented. "Hey, that's what I said" Alice said, laughing slightly. "You really are my baby" Her mother commented.

It wasn't long before the news spread throughout the town and the truth behind Ronaldo's custody of his daughter. Ronaldo tried to scare away the police with the Sneeple repellent he had bought online...which turned out to be silly string, needless to say he was arrested, and because he didn't believe in lawyers, he defended himself in court, this, combined with his contempt of court, led to it being a very quick trial. In short, Ronaldo was sentenced to fifty years in prison and Alice was free to move in with her mother...but that meant leaving Beach City.

Piers, didn't know what to make of it, for most of his childhood he had difficulty making friends, he didn't even think he'd even find himself a girlfriend, but one day he decided on a whim to ask Alice out two years ago, and needless to say, she said yes, and things had developed from there. But with her leaving, Piers was worried, could they make it work long distance or would they grow apart, Piers was worried more about the latter. 

He was hesitant but he knew it was the right thing to do to go see her off. "Well, I guess this is goodbye..." Piers said. "Hey, come on, we can still video chat, and besides, doesn't your family have that magical pink lion that fast travel?" Alice asked. "Oh my god, I forgot about Lion, ugh, I think my sister's absentmindedness is rubbing off on me" Piers grumbled. "I don't think you could ever measure up to her in that department" Alice joked "but hey, at least we can definitely make this long distance thing work." "Long distance? Honey, I only live in the next town over, it's about a two hour's drive from Beach City" Alice's Mother chimed in. "So, I guess this isn't a goodbye, more like a "see you tomorrow" huh?" Piers said. "It does, doesn't it, well..." Alice said as she gave Piers a kiss "see you tomorrow!"

The End 


End file.
